Celebrity4 min(s) read
Dax Shepard responds to Kristen Bell abuse accusations
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Dax Shepard has hit back at public criticism over the treatment of his wife of 13 years, Kristen Bell.
The actor finally spoke out following over a year of accusations made against him by the public, with many labeling him as 'controlling' and 'abusive' towards Bell.
Shepard, who is known for his roles in Parenthood and Idiocracy, spoke on his Armchair Expert podcast, which he has hosted since 2018.
The dad of two first faced backlash in October 2025 when the mother of his children shared a dark joke from him about their marriage on their anniversary.
She shared a snap of the couple hugging on Instagram, with the caption: "Happy 12th wedding anniversary to the man who, after an episode of Dateline, once said to me: 'I would never kill you. A lot of men have killed their wives at a certain point. Even though I’m heavily incentivized to kill you, I never would.'"
The Good Place actress then limited comments on the post following the negative reaction, while Shepard said he had 'no clue' about the reaction until around a week and a half later.
Dax Shepard addresses criticism
Over a year on, the 51-year-old has spoken about the backlash, explaining on a new podcast episode: “Another round of me being a terrible person was in the media, and I avoided that,
“But then it hit Kristen’s doorstep really hard, and then I got to find out everything that people are saying about me.”
He admitted that he was annoyed by claims that he is 'abusive' to his wife, admitting: “[The] weird narrative that is surrounding me as like controlling, abusive, now flirting with people in public, which I don’t do… It’s so frustrating.”
Shepard said that the claims affected him as he has dedicated his 'whole life to being the opposite' of the abusive men he grew up around.
"I don’t ever yell at my children. I don’t yell at my wife," he added.
“To have given it my all to be the opposite of what now some group of people is saying I am, it’s hard.”
He then added that the words used to describe him were 'deeply insulting' to Bell in particular.
Shepard highlighted: "She’s what, she’s sitting in a house with her two daughters and modeling some abusive relationship? Like, it’s very offensive to her."
Bell on Shepard flirting with others
The Frozen star sparked conversation two weeks ago, when she spoke about the couple's method of flirting during an appearance on the Armchair Expert podcast.
She said that Shepard flirts with her when he gives others compliments, explaining: “There’s a couple things Dax does where he doesn’t have to look up and wink at me, but I know that he’s just being the best boy.
“We’ll be at dinner and, like, he’ll say to the waiter or waitress, he’ll go, ‘Wow, you have incredible eyelashes, gorgeous eyes. Great, great job.’”
She added: “But that’s flirting with me because he just made someone else feel good.”
Shepard addresses Bell's comments
The actor said that his wife's phrasing could get 'easily confused for people', adding: “Because we’re saying, I flirt with Kristen by tipping people a lot. And I flirt with Kristen by complimenting people.”
He clarified: “If you think I’m complimenting like hot young waitresses, yeah, you got a problem,
“I’m finding the dude that I don’t think’s had a compliment in a while and tell him I love his shows. It’s always somebody that I want to make their day.”
Shepard said that he can usually 'brush off' comments from the public about him, but after over a year of these claims, he said: "It just starts making me think like, ‘Oh, is this now my f***ing role?’"
He admitted that the comments make him feel like 'going away'.